Pizzaiolo Bez Compani's new Los Feliz pizzeria, Mother Dough, offers an exciting take on wood-fired pizza. Named for the traditional process of using yesterday's dough as a starter, Bez has cultivated his namesake mother dough for "a long long time." Early each morning, a portion is mixed into '00' flour dough to be used that evening. Despite this seemingly short gestation period, the crust flavor is richly developed. Its complexity and tartness lingers in memory long after the meal.

The crust is soft through and through with a tender, almost fleshy feel. The interior—thicker than usual—is a complex web of elastic dough littered with diversely sized bubbles. The extra moist crumb is blanketed with char from the Stefano Ferrara oven.

The Zucchini pizza ($17) is pooled with buffalo mozzarella, Manchego, zucchini and thyme. All of Bez's pies are served in the classical style: uncut, with a serrated knife to slice it up yourself. As you divvy up the pie, a pale steam of aromatic thyme fills your nose. Licked by flames swirling off cords of oak and almond wood, the carbonized crust is the first element to hit the tongue. Fired at 850 degrees for 60 seconds, singed threads of julienned zucchini slither through extra virgin olive oil and crystals of sea salt.

Though Mother Dough has only been open for three weeks, some people are comparing it to Mozza. Not for their similarity, but for their distinct differences—the refined contemporary approach of Mozza versus Compani's Old World techniques at Mother Dough. Eastsiders can definitely be proud of this neighborhood addition.

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About the Author

After stints in the Bay Area and Brooklyn, Kelly landed back in her hometown of Los Angeles. She writes the blog The Vegetarian Foodie and contributes to other local food publications. In 2011 began writing Los Angeles Slice coverage for the columns Top This and Daily Slice. She is seriously obsessed with all things pizza and is constantly seeking the next great slice.